Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka has criticized the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for the detention of former Minister of Power and Steel, Dr. Olu Agunloye. The EFCC recently arraigned Agunloye before Justice Donatus Okorowo of the Federal High Court on charges of fraud.
Agunloye pleaded not guilty to the charges during the court proceedings on Wednesday, and the judge ordered his remand in Kuje Correctional Center until bail is granted.
In a statement titled “In pursuit of justice, productivity, under the rule of law,” Soyinka expressed his concerns about the motives behind Agunloye’s detention and called for a reconsideration of the EFCC’s actions.
Soyinka questioned the EFCC’s practices and emphasized the need to curtail the arbitrary detention of citizens, especially when exercised in defiance of the law and the pronouncements of its agencies.
“The immediate provocation for these reflections is the ongoing predicament of a former Minister of Power, Dr. Olu Agunloye, currently detained by the EFCC, in total contempt of sense and justice, or indeed, basic humane considerations. We shall not go into the merit or demerits of the charges raised against him over a 16-year-old project that bears the name Mambilla – that is the business of the law courts,” Soyinka wrote.
While acknowledging that the concerns partially stem from individual fundamental human rights, Soyinka pointed out the broader question of how public interest, such as the pursuit of justice, is served by the arbitrary exercise of power in detaining a former public servant.
The EFCC had declared Agunloye wanted in December 2023 on charges of forgery and corruption related to the Mambilla project. The former minister, who served under President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government (1999-2003), was accused of fraudulently awarding the contract for the project without Federal Executive Council (FEC) approval.
Agunloye denied the accusations, alleging that the former president was distorting facts. The case has drawn attention, raising questions about the justification for Agunloye’s detention and the overall conduct of the EFCC in pursuing justice.